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Battle at Chippanicas Gorge by Austin Peters
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Battle at Chppanicas Gorge
Date: 11 March 2003, 10:42 PM
The Battle for Chippanicas Gorge Part 1
"Great plan," muttered Private Matthew Portage. The small outpost in the middle of the gorge had been continually slammed by artillery for the last 12 hours. The original plan was to sneak into the gorge unnoticed and roll out the big guns. A small group of roughly 30 troops had been pinned down on the other end. The first problem with the plan was another trooper accidentally dropped an artillery shell. He was not only injured, but their cover was completely blown. The other problem was that there troop deployment tactics were screwed up beyond reasonable belief. The rosters were misplaced then deleted, and all the drop ships were deployed. They had to walk ¼ of a mile to the gorge. This, however, did allow for the ability to take a few tanks. The only way these tanks helped was to take the continuous pounding by heavy gunfire. The Master Chief managed to take out all the Hunters and 3 Banshees, but it hardly helped. The Covenant had rallied enough forces to easily storm a giant citadel with relative ease.
"Incoming!" shouted Sergeant 1st class Rico Vanderbilt. Twelve mortar shells hit the small outpost. Matthew felt the giblets of meat hit his back. Twelve more gone, he thought. Only twenty of the original force was left.
"Report: The force has escaped. Permission to retreat." A scout yelled over the helmet intercoms.
"Okay men. Let's push em' back and retreat." Screamed the Sarge as a soldier was shot directly behind him. He wiped the blood from his rifle. "Concentrate your fire on the mortar tanks. Master Chief, you get the Banshees. Portage, you move up and mine the pass. Take these claymores and set them up with tripwires." He handed Portage a large pack.
"Take my battle rifle," said Master Chief as he handed him the large bullpup.
"Thanks." A wave of plasma went over the encampment as a pool of blood began to appear in the snow. Matthew creped along the side of a tank. A Grunt popped out from the front. They met eye to eye. The Grunt shook as they stared at one another. Matthew couldn't bear to shoot it. A shot cracked out behind him and the Grunt was no more. Matthew felt a slight twinge of sadness. No matter, just one more Covenant gone, he thought. He continued down the narrow wall. A plasma charge grazed his left cheek. A snowflake fell upon the open wound. In the midst of all the chaos, for the first time Matthew noticed the sheer beauty of the rock and snow. The dark black, almost purple, rock shined offset by the falling wisps of snow. He stopped noticing the gunfire for a moment. It's a shame the beautiful land had to be destroyed like this. Then he abruptly stumbled into a small downgrade in the rock. A perfect place to set the explosives, he thought. He laid down a few of the large bombs. "Now, how to get across the path of gunfire." he said.
"Gotcha covered," said Master Chief over the intercom. He fired a rocket just behind a Jackal and blew him forward to Matthew's position. He removed the shield from his arm.
"Hold you fire!" shouted Matthew over the intercom. He raised the shield and ran across the path of fire. All the shots were absorbed by the shield. Matthew quickly laid down the rest of the explosive and connected the tripwire to them. "Cover me!" he breathed into the intercom. The allied fire intensified as Matthew ran back to the barricade. He narrowly dodged a mortar shell as he rolled behind a tank.
"Good job," Sarge said enthusiastically, "take this sniper rifle and target the Elites. You earned your medals today Portage." Matthew moved up into position.
"I've got a target," he said in a quiet voice. He pulled the trigger and watched as an Elite directly next to the target was showered in blood. Yet as fast as Matthew could pull the trig, another wave of plasma hit once again. Matthew was struck in the shoulder and once in the chest. He fell back into the snow. He could feel his body gasping for air, and all his muscles tense up. He looked over at the remains of the Grunt that was killed earlier. Then he looked out toward the rock near where he planted the explosive. Matthew thought about the sight for a moment. There was a sort of serenity and beauty to it. He coughed up a little blood, and then Master Chief noticed his fallen ally.
"You'll be alright son," he said comfortingly.
"No. This'll be my last battle. I just ask that you bury me here." Matthew felt a slight feeling of heat in all his limbs, and then felt a wave of peace pass over his body. Then everything grew very bright, and Private Matthew Portage died lying right there in the snow.
To Be Continued
Battle For Chippanicas Gorge Part 2
Date: 12 March 2003, 2:38 AM
The Battle for Chippanicas Gorge Part 2
"Great plan," heard Corporal Devin Berkley over his helmet intercom.
"Shut up and stop your whining. We've got enough problems as is," he responded in a slightly aggravated tone. He was covered in the wet, sticky snow that covered the gorge. The splash damage from that shell tore his battle armor up quite a bit, and on top of that, his rifle was disabled in the explosion. Extra weapons were few and far between, so the only weapon he could use was a sniper rifle. That was his single worst skill in basic.
"Incoming!" shouted Sergeant 1st class Rico Vanderbilt. Twelve mortar shells hit the small outpost. Devin leaped off the tank and covered his head.
"Report: The force has escaped. Permission to retreat." A scout yelled over the helmet intercoms.
"Okay men. Let's push em' back and retreat." Screamed the Sarge as a soldier was shot directly behind him. He wiped the blood from his rifle. "Concentrate your fire on the mortar tanks. Master Chief, you get the Banshees. Portage, you move up and mine the pass."
Out of the corner of Devin's eye he saw something move near the edge of the tank he was crouched on. He whipped out his reserve pistol and fired. A blue cloud filled the air. He then looked at the Marine standing in front of the former being. His hand was shakier than a Grunt with Parkinson's. Devin was miserable. But all he could do was keep firing. He looked a little shaky.
"Keep your eye on the enemy, soldier." said the Sarge. Devin sighed as he lifted the big lug of a rifle. He trained his sights on an Elite that had his back turned. Master Chief fired off a rocket at a nearby Jackal, blowing him forward.
"Game," he took the safety off, "set," he put his finger on the trigger "and ma-"
"Hold your fire!" yelled the Sarge. Devin managed to stop himself from firing.
"Cover me!" screamed a Marine on his left flank. He aimed at the Elite once more and pulled the trigger. A split second before his death, the Elite looked directly at the bullet. He then found he couldn't follow the bullet as it went through his skull. Devin noticed as it fell that its eyed were crossed. God really does have a sense of humor, he thought. The same Marine he had covered moments before rolled behind the tank as a mortar shell slammed into the tanks. The Sarge handed him a sniper rifle and sent him to the position next to Devin. The Marine with the name 'Portage' engraved on his helmet quickly crouched down as Devin blasted another Elite. Then Portage shot and the enemy rebounded with a wave of fire. Devin got down, but Portage was gunned down next to him. Master Chief ran over to the fallen soldier. Devin then crouched down under the tank and targeted another Elite.
"Berkley, get out from under there and cover us. We're getting outta here. Marines, assemble for retreat." Devin slithered out from under the tank, and fired another round at the Covenant. Seven Grunts in a row fell and knocked over an Elite. He quickly took the shot and blew away the Elite. Devin then shot wildly with his pistol as he ran back towards the retreating Marines. Another wave of plasma flew about him and blew off his left arm. He leaped around a nearby wall and stopped for a moment. He then reloaded his pistol as he heard an odd sound around the wall. He stepped around the corner, weapon drawn. His pistol found its way into they mouth of a gold Elite. They both stopped, frozen in the moment. Neither knew what to think. They stood staring at each other. Then Devin snapped to attention and pulled the trigger. Out flew the large, purple brains of an Elite. He turned around and ran toward the rest of the Marines. He heard them beckoning him, but he couldn't decipher it all. Then a huge explosion erupted behind him. A few Covenant limbs flew past his head.
"This is Tango Dropship 318. Do you read me? I'm coming in for evac."
"Roger Tango. Marines, assemble for evac," said the Sarge as Devin made it back to the small group of Marines. The drop ship landed. The small group of men leaped aboard as they took off. Suddenly, a Banshee flew down from nowhere. It began firing like mad. Master Chief collected as many clips as he could and jumped from the ship. Devin looked from him to the Banshee. It fired a fuel rod shot directly into the troop quarters. Devin ran to the entrance and jumped just as the shot collided with the ship. As he fell, pieces of shrapnel riddled his body. The body of Portage fell past him just before he hit the ground. "Goodbye my friends," said Devin a split second before he hit the ground.
To be continued.
Battle for Chippanicas Gorge Part 3
Date: 14 March 2003, 11:04 AM
The Battle for Chippanicas Gorge Part 3
"Incoming!" shouted Sergeant 1st class Rico Vanderbilt. Twelve mortar shells hit the small outpost. A piece of a former Marine covered the barrel of Sergeant 1st class Rico Vanderbilt's battle rifle. He brushed it off without a flinch or change of emotion. The cold weather will mask the smell, he thought. But that wasn't the only advantage to an Earth winter, oh no, it stops troop movement, messes with the munitions and supplies, and freezes everyone out there to the bone.
"Report: The force has escaped. Permission to retreat." A scout yelled over the helmet intercoms.
"Okay men. Let's push em' back and retreat." Screamed the Sarge as one more of his men fell directly in front of his face. He cleaned out his intercom. "Concentrate your fire on the mortar tanks. Master Chief, you get the Banshees. Portage, you move up and mine the pass. Take these claymores and set them up with tripwires." Sarge handed Portage a large pack. He reloaded his rifle. "Chief, hand me a rocket launcher." Master Chief tossed him one. He climbed over a tank and targeted a mortar tank. He pulled the trigger. An Elite nearby noticed the rocket and lifted his rifle and launched 3 quick rounds at the projectile. It exploded in mid air. "Master Chief, get those Elites, their interfering with my fire."
"Roger that." The Master Chief lifted his huge sniper rifle and launched 4 rapid rounds. 4 Elites hit the snow.
He then noticed that Corporal Berkley was looking toward Portage. "Keep your eye on the enemy soldier," said Sarge sternly.
"Let's try this again," said Sarge in a very aggravated tone. He lifted the huge brown monster and fired. The rocket smashed into the tank and toppled 12 Jackals. He then heard in his intercom the quiet words, "Now to get across the path of fire." It was Portage.
"Gotcha covered," responded the Master Chief. Sarge tossed back the rocket launcher and the Chief fired. Portage picked up a shield.
"Hold your fire!" he yelled. All the shots died down as he ran across. As soon as he got to the other side he yelled, "Cover me!" Sarge gave them permission to fire. They unleashed all they had on their enemies. Portage dove behind the barricade and a mortal shell hit just in front of the row of tanks. If there's one thing the UNSC learned from Halo is that tanks can withstand anything. Potage sprinted up next to the Sarge. "Good job, take this sniper rifle and target the Elites. You earned your medals today Portage." He moved into position. Sarge heard him fire a shot. Seconds later a wave of plasma hit the group of Marines. Sarge leapt down and covered his head. His helmet was split into two pieces. Berkley slithered under the tank. "Berkley, get out from under there and cover us. We're getting outta here. Marines, assemble for retreat." Sarge looked to the Master Chief. He had the shell of Portage slung over his shoulder. Sarge beckoned the Marines to come. They ran backwards firing out at the Covenant. He had a feeling that they wouldn't make it out. They continued running until they were out of range of the Covenant. Berkley stumbled toward them as they yelled at him, encouraging him to get back. Then the Covenant crossed the tripwire. Berkley kept on running. He managed to stumble back just as the squad received a transmission. "This is Tango Dropship 318. Do you read me? I'm coming in for evac."
"Roger Tango. Marines, assemble for evac," said the Sarge. They grouped together as the dropship landed. The small assemblage of men leaped aboard the Pelican. All but the Sarge, that is. It took off before he managed to get aboard. He swore under his breath as he looked back. A veritable battalion of Covenant charged at him. They couldn't quite see the Sarge due to the smoke of the explosion. He turned in a perfect 180 and ran. He heard a buzz above his head. A Banshee flew down from the top of the gorge and blasted the Pelican seconds after Master Chief leaped out. Master Chief rolled onto the ground and waved to the Sarge. He grabbed a falling pistol from the air and blasted away the Covenant John Woo style. Sarge turned around and drew his rifle the same instant sprayed the Covenant with bullets. The large dropship fell and hit the ground engulfed in flame behind the Chief. Four lightning fast Ghosts burst from the mass of alien invaders. Sarge and the Chief leaped behind the former human vehicle. They each grabbed a handful of grenades from the wreckage and tore some cloth from a Marines uniform. They made a sling out of the cloth and hurled the grenades at the Covenant. It offset their plasma grenades and blew up most all of them. Then the Ghosts caught up with the human defenders. They dove to either side of the Pelican and fired like mad. Sarge drew his last plasma grenade and hurled it at one of the Ghosts. It hit the Elite pilot square in the forehead and made him one more inanimate part of the environment, staining the ground with his blood mixed with machine oil. The Master Chief took out two more Ghosts using is newly acquired rocket launcher. The final Ghost slid out from cover behind the Sarge. It charged him seconds before he noticed it. He tried to leap sideways but was a millisecond too late. He landed on the front of the vehicle. The Chief took notice, but all he could do was watch. An errant bullet could easily kill the human. The Ghost made an abrupt turn and flung him off. The broken rib hindered any chance of movement. Sarge looked to his left only to find a horde of Covenant charging his way, kicking up snow and human remains in their wake. "See ya in Valhalla, Chief," said Sarge said an instant before having his skull crushed by an Elite. To be continued.
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